The Kahtoola Stage Four route from Nova Guides to Red Cliff totaled 14.5 miles (23.3km) and 2,800 feet (854 meters) of elevation gain. After leaving Nova Guides, runners had to climb uphill on very steep terrain for two miles making this stage a real leg burner. At 8 a.m. the RUN6 runners and crew that wanted to run left Nova Guides with the traditional AC/DC’s Highway to Hell song blasting while spectators cheered them on.
Friday’s route started with a dirt road that allowed for a nice two mile warm up. Just as runners started to warm up, the trail kept going up, and up. After a while, the gradual climb turned into a very steep climb. After the first five-mile climb was done, checkpoint one and panoramic mountain views were in sight.
After taking photos and enjoying the views, runners cruised along the ridge before dropping back down in the woods for a long and fun descent into Red Cliff. Around mile 11, the trail merged with the stream and there was no option to skip between rocks this time to avoid getting wet. Instead, it was full on foot and ankle soak as runners went a mile down the ice-cold stream. The water although cold, was very refreshing and felt good on swollen feet.
Once the stream portion of the run ended, checkpoint two greeted the runners, followed by a nice dry downhill on open dirt road dropping runners right in front of Mango’s Mountain Grill in Red Cliff. Mango’s is a highlight of TransRockies Run. From fresh BBQ outside, fish tacos and delicious margaritas, Mango’s knows how to cater to the TransRockies crowd.
Kahtoola Stage Four offered great weather and amazing scenery. Only two stages left as runners keep pushing their way toward the finish at Beaver Creek.
Saturday is LEDLENSER Stage Five from Red Cliff to Vail. This will be the second longest run of the week with 24.1 miles (38.8km) to cover and 4,100 feet (1250km) of elevation gain.
RUN3 Results:
 |
Stage 1 | Stage 2 | Stage 3 | Overall |
| Open Men |
Mike Popejoy |
Mike Popejoy | Mike Popejoy | Mike Popejoy |
| Open Women | Helen Galerakis | Angela Zaeh | Helen Galerakis | Helen Galerakis |
|
Stage 4 Winners |
Overall Leaders |
|
|
Open Men |
Chad Trammell |
Chad Trammell |
|
Open Women |
Magdalena Boulet |
Magdalena Boulet |
|
50+ Men |
Blaise Brochard |
Blaise Brochard |
|
50+ Women |
Judy Carter |
Vicki Oswald |
|
Team 100+ Open |
Mark Thurston and Joel Axler |
Mark Thurston and Joel Axler |
|
80+ Open Men |
Jonathan Toker and Chris Clarke |
Jonathan Toker and Chris Clarke |
|
80+ Open Women |
Becky Kirschenmann and Kerrie Wlad |
Becky Kirschenmann and Kerrie Wlad |
|
Team 80+ Mixed |
Eric True and Colleen Lingley |
Eric True and Colleen Lingley |
|
Team Open Men |
Charlie Ware and Catlow Shipek |
Charlie Ware and Catlow Shipek |
|
Team Open Women |
Keely Henninger and Amanda Basham |
Keely Henninger and Amanda Basham |
|
Team Open Mixed |
Germain Grangier and Schide Katie |
Germain Grangier and Schide Katie |
Stage Five Recap
Saturday marked the fifth stage of the TransRockies Run where runners traveled from Red Cliff to Vail covering 24.1 miles (38.8 km) and 4,100 feet (1250 m) elevation gain. The route was long and long but runners were rewarded with breathtaking views of Colorado’s peaks. It will all be worth it as runners only have one more day to go before reaching Beaver Creek!
Saturday morning was an early one. Breakfast was served at the crack of dawn and runners were shuttled over to Red Cliff starting at 6:45 a.m. Luckily, runners could escape the brisk air inside Mango’s where they could wait for the 8 a.m. start and sip some coffee.
At 8 a.m. runners were off and within the first few miles, runners started up a long, gradual incline, which continued for eight miles and covered a total of 2,500 feet of vert. Eventually CP1 was in sight and runners re-fueled for the next climb.
From checkpoint one, runners entered into beautiful singletrack, weaving in-and-out of trees on rolling terrain, eventually popping out at 11,697 feet (3565 m) on top of Vail Mountain. Not only were runners greeted by beautiful scenery, but a Santa cheerleader offered encouragement resulting in many smiles. The open section of trail continued climbing up switchbacks on the backside of Vail Mountain and onward to checkpoint two.
At checkpoint two, runners were done with most of the hard climbing of the day and awaited their long descent into Vail Village, passing checkpoint three with five miles to go.
The five-mile descent from Vail isn’t an easy one but runners were eager to finish the stage strong while traversing sweet singletrack winding between trees, chairlifts, mountain bikers and hikers. Eventually, runners started to see Vail Village in the distance with the finishing arch in sight!
Once again, this stage offered beautiful blue skies and high temps in the mid 70’s. Stage five complete and runners will be taking on the Beaver Creek stage 6 on Sunday!
|
LEDLENSER Stage 5 |
Overall Leaders |
|
|
Open Men |
Chad Trammell |
Chad Trammell |
|
Open Women |
Magdalena Boulet |
Magdalena Boulet |
|
50+ Men |
Holger Schulze |
Blaise Brochard |
|
50+ Women |
Vicki Oswald |
Vicki Oswald |
|
Team 100+ Open |
Mark Thurston and Joel Axler |
Mark Thurston and Joel Axler |
|
80+ Open Men |
Jonathan Toker and Chris Clarke |
Jonathan Toker and Chris Clarke |
|
80+ Open Women |
Becky Kirschenmann and Kerrie Wlad |
Becky Kirschenmann and Kerrie Wlad |
|
Team 80+ Mixed |
Eric True and Colleen Lingley |
Eric True and Colleen Lingley |
|
Team Open Men |
Charlie Ware and Catlow Shipek |
Charlie Ware and Catlow Shipek |
|
Team Open Women |
Keely Henninger and Amanda Basham |
Keely Henninger and Amanda Basham |
|
Team Open Mixed |
Germain Grangier and Schide Katie |
Germain Grangier and Schide Katie |
Stage Six Recap
After six days of hard work and dedication, the 2017 TransRockies Run has come to an end. Sunday was a bittersweet day as runners ended their journey to Beaver Creek!
The energy at Vail was high at 8 a.m. as runners took off for their last day. You could tell that everyone was determined to finish TransRockies at Beaver Creek. It was time to push through those achy quads and blisters one last time.
With 5,250 feet (1600m) of vertical gain in front of them, runners paced themselves at the start as they headed back up Vail. The course today featured various obstacles like heat, steep and technical descents, tight singletrack and a 1,000-foot climb at the finish. However, runners pushed through it all to make their way to that infamous TRR arch.
The climb to checkpoint one was a tough seven miles. Runners took off out of town with a nice road warm-up before hitting singletrack that started to steadily climb up. Although this was a difficult climb, the trail was absolutely beautiful. Runners stopped to take photos and take in the views. After passing through checkpoint one, the runners were almost done with the first massive climb and what awaited them was a well-deserved downhill on Buck Creek trail. Buck Creek trail is technical, steep and rocky and for some, the downhill brought speedy legs, while for others, the downhill wasn’t as much of a recovery as they would hope for.
After descending for a few miles, the trail opened up to a creek crossing, a tunnel to run through and then runners were led to checkpoint three. What stood between Avon and the finish was yet another mountain to climb. It was a tough mental game at this point knowing that there were only a few more miles to go, yet one more climb up. Exhausted and hot the runners pushed on, continuing to climb up, where they could see the village of Beaver Creek.
With less than 2 miles to go, runners zigzagged up switchbacks and then down into Beaver Creek Resort where spectators cheered them on as they crossed the finish line for the final time. The finish brought a whirlwind of emotions for runners. Smiles, feelings of accomplishment, and joy – a great way to finish out the last day of TransRockies Run. Sunday night is the banquet for all runners to reflect on the past week with great photos from Raven Eye Photography, an awards ceremony and a big dance party (for those that can)!
|
Beaver Creek Stage 6 |
|
|
Open Men |
Chad Trammell |
|
Open Women |
Magdalena Boulet |
|
50+ Men |
Blaise Brochard |
|
50+ Women |
Vicki Oswald |
|
Team 100+ Open |
Mark Thurston and Joel Axler |
|
80+ Open Men |
Jonathan Toker and Chris Clarke |
|
80+ Open Women |
Becky Kirschenmann and Kerrie Wlad |
|
Team 80+ Mixed |
Eric True and Colleen Lingley |
|
Team Open Men |
Charlie Ware and Catlow Shipek |
|
Team Open Women |
Keely Henninger and Amanda Basham |
|
Team Open Mixed |
Germain Grangier and Schide Katie |
|
1st |
2nd |
3rd |
|
|
Open Men |
Chad Trammell |
Drew Miller |
Caleb Schiff |
|
Open Women |
Magdalena Boulet |
Stephanie Weigel |
Meaghan Gravina |
|
50+ Men |
Blaise Brochard |
Holger Schulze |
Grant Miller |
|
50+ Women |
Vicki Oswald |
Judy Carter |
Christine Hansen |
|
Team 100+ Open |
Mark Thurston and Joel Axler |
Grafton Houston and Charisse Hansen |
Henry Peck and Juda McGannon |
|
80+ Open Men |
Jonathan Toker and Chris Clarke |
Alan Miller and Guillaume Bailly |
Jacques Botes and Leo Rust |
|
80+ Open Women |
Becky Kirschenmann and Kerrie Wlad |
Shannon Winslade and Elaine Lowry |
Cheryl Steiner and Rachel Paragon |
|
Team 80+ Mixed |
Eric True and Colleen Lingley |
Emily Edwards and Christopher Edwards |
Johanna Schlegel and Bernd Reuter |
|
Team Open Men |
Charlie Ware and Catlow Shipek |
Kevin Weil and T.J. Garlatz |
Christopher Post and Brennan Pratt |
|
Team Open Women |
Keely Henninger and Amanda Basham |
Maggie Guterl and Jackie Merritt |
Melanie Gilbert and Emilie Marchand |
|
Team Open Mixed |
Germain Grangier and Schide Katie |
Ryan Lassen and Cat Bradley |
Erin Kolla and Courtney Kolla |